Google and Cochlear to Use AI to Build Personalised Hearing Devices

Google partnered with various healthcare services and technology organisations including Cochlear, the manufacturer of cochlear implants and Australian Hearing Hub members, the National Acoustic Laboratories (NAL), Macquarie University, the Shepherd Centre, and NeXtSense. The Organisations and healthcare services will be using artificial intelligence (AI) to create personalised hearing devices that will cater to induvial listening needs.

Sam Sepah, lead accessibility research product manager at Google explains, “The idea is to be able to customize the experience for each person, and for the environment they are currently in.”

The technology will be beneficial for those who use hearing aids in noisy environments such as restaurants, public transport, or live performances. According to the report, AI-powered hearing aids will enable hearing aid users to differentiate sound sources, such as people speaking, more easily, making it simpler for them to participate in conversations.

Google plans to solve this problem by using artificial intelligence to better identify, categorize and segregate sound sources.

According to World Health Organisation, more than 1.5 billion people worldwide live with hearing loss today (430 million with disabling hearing loss).